The present invention relates to a liquid supplying system preferably used in the field of an ink jet recording apparatus and the like, a negative pressure generating member container and a liquid container used for the system, an ink jet cartridge and an ink jet recording apparatus employing the system, and an ink container. More specifically, the present invention relates to a liquid supplying system in which a portion or portions of containers are exchangeable.
In the field of an ink jet recording apparatus, there have been proposed various ink containers which apply negative pressure to an ink jet head. The most common structure among these proposals is a structure with utilizes the capillary force of porous material; more specifically, a structure comprising an external shell, a piece of porous material, preferably sponge or the like, compressed into the shell in a manner to entirely fill the internal space of the shell, and an air venting hole, or an air vent, through which air is drawn into an ink storing portion to enhance the ink supplying performance during printing.
However, usage of a porous member as an ink retaining member creates a problem in that it makes ink storage ratio per unit volume rather low in order to solve this problem, the inventors of the present invention has proposed, in an official journal EP0580433, an ink container comprising a virtually sealed ink storing chamber, that is, an ink container sealed except for the presence of a connective path to a capillary force generating member storing chamber. This ink container is used in the state in which the capillary force generating member storing chamber is open to the atmospheric air. They have proposed another invention in an official journal EP0581531. According to this invention, an ink storing chamber is rendered replaceably connectable to an ink container with the above described structure.
In the case of the above described ink container, ink is supplied from the ink storing chamber to the capillary force generating member storing chamber through gas-liquid exchange, or a process in which gas is drawn into the ink storing chamber as the ink in the ink storing chamber is drawn out. Therefore, it has merit in that during this gas-liquid exchange, ink can be supplied under the condition in which the negative pressure remains approximately stable. In addition, from the viewpoint of exchangeability, the ink container disclosed in the official journal is EP0581531 is a technically superior ink container.
On the other hand, the inventors of the present invention have proposed, in an official journal EP0691207, an ink container which employs fiber made of olefinic resin (for example, polypropylene, polyethylene, or the like) which possesses thermal-plasticity, as the material for the capillary force generating member in the above described ink container. This ink container is superior in terms of the stability of the ink stored therein. It is also superior in terms of recyclability, because the external shell of the ink container, and the material for the internal fibrous member, are made of the same type of material.
Further, the inventors of the present invention have proposed, in an official journal EP0738605, a liquid storage container, which is characterized in that it comprises an external sheet in the form of an approximately polygonal prism, and an internal storing portion which is identical or similar in shape to the internal space of the shell, and is capable of deforming in response to the drawing of the liquid therein from the container, and that the thickness of the walls of the internal storing portion in the form of an approximately polygonal prism is rendered less at the corner portions than at the center portions of the walls. In this liquid storage container, the storing portion properly contracts as the liquid is drawn out (gas-liquid exchange does not occur), and therefore, the liquid can be supplied while using negative pressure. Thus, compared to a conventional ink storing member in the form of a pouch, this liquid storage container does not need any restriction in terms of the position where it is placed. Therefore, it can be placed on a carriage. Further, ink is directly stored in the storing portion, and therefore, the invention may be valued as an excellent invention in terms of exchangeability, and also in terms of improvement in ink storage ratio.
As described above, in the case of an ink container of a type in which a capillary force generating member container such as the above described one, and a correspondent ink storing chamber, are disposed adjacent to each other, when the ink in an ink storage chamber, the internal volume of which is fixed at a predetermined volume, is supplied into the capillary force generating member storage chamber, gas-liquid exchange occurs to allow gas to be drawn into the ink storage chamber.
In order to pursue more ideal conditions for an ink container which has the above described excellent structure, the inventors of the present invention paid attention to the gas-liquid exchange mechanism, and how the ink in the ink storage chamber is drawn out during the gas-liquid exchange, recognizing the following two points.
The first point regards the ambient air drawn into the ink storage chamber through gas-liquid exchange. When the ink in the ink storage chamber is supplied into the capillary force generating member storage chamber through gas-liquid exchange, the ambient air is drawn into the ink storage chamber by an amount equivalent to the amount of the ink drawn out as the ink is supplied. Therefore, a state in which the air from the outside and the ink coexist in the ink storage chamber is effected. This air in the ink storage chamber expands due to the charges which occur to the ambience in which a printer is used (for example, daily temperature fluctuation), sometimes forcing the ink in the ink storage chamber into the capillary force generating member storage chamber. Thus, in the past, a buffer space as large as possible was sometimes secured in the capillary force generating member storage chamber, more specifically, in the capillary force generating member itself, in consideration of the amount by which the ink moves, relative to the expansion ratio, and also in consideration of the various environments in which the ink container is used.
Based on the above described recognition, the inventors of the present invention produced an ink container, the ink storage chamber of which was replaceably connectable to the capillary force generating member storage chamber, and which employed a wad of fiber of olefinic resin as the capillary force generating member, as shown in FIG. 1, (a) is a drawing for depicting a capillary force generating member storage container 1004 as the capillary force generating member storage chamber in the state in which an exchange liquid storage container 1007 shown in FIG. 1, (b), as an exchangeable ink storage chamber, has been removed. In FIG. 1, (a), a referential numeral 1001 designates a capillary force generating member formed of mixed strands of polypropylene and polyethylene; 1002, ink supplying opening; 1003, an air vent; 1005, a connective path portion to be connected to the exchange liquid storage container 1007 for forming a joint path; and a referential numeral 1006 designates a buffer chamber in connection with the air vent. A referential character L designates the interface between the liquid and gas (hereinafter, xe2x80x9cgas-liquid interfacexe2x80x9d). After the liquid in the exchange liquid storage container 1007 is used up, and the exchange liquid storage container 1007 is removed, the interface L is in the connective opening. In other words, a portion of the capillary force generating member, which is exposed at the connective path portion, constitutes a region in which no ink is present. On the other hand, FIG. 1, (b) depicts the state in which the exchange liquid storage container 1007 has been connected to the capillary force generating member storage container 1004. The exchange liquid storage container 1007 holds ink in the shell 1009, and the internal space of the shell 1009 is virtually airtightly sealed, except for the presence of the ink outlet 1008. In this state in which the exchange liquid storage container 1007 is connected, and ink is within the exchange liquid storage container 1007, a gas-liquid interface La in the connective path portion 1005 is exists at a level above the top end of the joint path; the interface L has risen compared to the state illustrated in FIG. 1, (a); in other words, more ink is held in the capillary force generating member.
When the ink container shown in FIG. 1, (b), was subjected to an ambience which changed in the same manner as in the actual ambience in which the ink container was used, it could be observed that as the number n of the cycle increased, the magnitude xcex94Ln of the range of the movement of the gas-liquid interface Ln in terms of the gravity direction (different between the highest and lowest positions LH and LL of the interface in terms of the gravity direction) increased. It was also observed that as a process in which the ink in the exchange liquid storage container was used up and a fresh exchange liquid storage container was connected was repeated, the space, in the capillary force generating member, which was in connection to the air vent and held mainly air, that is, the space VB above the gas-liquid interface L, reduced. As the space VB reduced as the result of the repetition of the container exchange and ambient change, as described above, it occurred that even the region which was originally secured as the buffer space always retained ink, raising a possibility that the region no longer could function as the buffer space, allowing, in the worst case, ink to leak out of the air vent or ink outlet hole.
It was possible to think that the above described problem is caused by the following characteristics of an ink absorbent material formed of fibrous material instead of porous material such as foamed urethane, that is, the conventional material:
(1) The amount of the pressure loss resulting from ink movement is small because of the large amount of void ratio.
(2) There is only a small amount of difference in the contact angle of ink, relative to a strand of fiber, between when the ink advances and when ink retreats.
(3) In the case of the ink absorbent material formed of fiber, capillary force is generated even in the gap between adjacent strands of fiber, and therefore, compared to the ink absorbent material formed by removing some of the cell walls after urethane was made to foam, there is little regional variation in the strength of capillary force, in terms of the size of the urethane sponge cell (approximately 80-120 xcexcm), throughout the ink absorbent material.
Thus, the inventors of the present invention studied the aforementioned problems while paying keen attention to the above described characteristics of fiber, and discovered, as a result, that when fiber strands were arranged in parallel in the gravity direction (direction perpendicular to the horizontal direction in which the gas-liquid interface is formed), that is, when the directions of the fiber strands were made parallel to the gravity direction, the ratio at which the above described phenomenon occurred increased.
On the other hand, the second point concerns the route, through the capillary force generating member, of the ink introduced into the capillary force generating member storage chamber from the ink storage chamber.
To describe with reference to FIG. 1, (b), in the case of a conventional ink container, the connective hole 1005 is located adjacent to the bottom wall of the capillary force generating member storage container 1004, and the aforementioned ink delivery hole 1002 located away from the connective hole 1005 to deliver ink from the capillary force generating member storage container 1004 is also located adjacent to the bottom wall of the capillary force generating member storage container 1004 (or in the bottom wall), as is the connective hole 1005.
Therefore, among the typical routes through which the ink in the exchange liquid storage container 1007 reaches the ink delivery hole 1002 through the connective hole 1005 and the capillary force generating member 1001, the shortest route is route A shown in FIG. 1, (b), whereas the longest path is route B shown in FIG. 1, (b).
After being drawn out of the exchange liquid storage container 1007 through the connective hole 1008, the ink flows toward the ink delivery hole 1002, while remaining in contact with the capillary force generating member 1001. However, when there exist various routes different in length, it is quite natural that the ink which follows route B, which offers a larger number of opportunities for the ink to make contact with the capillary force generating member 1001, will to be more affected by the capillary force generating member 1001 compared to the ink which follows route A.
Further, the capillary force generating member 1001 has the following nature: it physically adsorbs a substantial amount of the constitutional components in the ink, as if trapping them like a filter, and also chemically adsorbs them by reacting with them.
Therefore, a body of ink which follows route B in which it is more affected by the capillary force generating member 1001, and another body of ink which follows route A in which it is less affected by the capillary force generating member 1001, become different in their components.
On the other hand, in recent years during which demand for sturdiness has been increasing, the countermeasures for the above described problem have been taken. For example, thin ink, that is, ink with one sixth the normal density, was used to reduce the graininess of each recording dot; a solvent capable of preventing recording dots, which were different in color and where they were formed, from mixing (bleeding) into the regions beyond their intended boundaries, was added; a solvent capable of improving ink in terms of fixation to recording medium was added; or pigments were used. When countermeasures such as those listed above were taken, the difference in the ink routes sometimes created an appearance of subtle unevenness across an image being recorded, in terms of color tone, ink fixation, and frictional resistance.
The present invention is based on the aspects of the ink container, which were recognized for the first time by the inventors of the present invention, for example, the relationship between the fiber strand direction and the direction in which the gas-liquid interface is formed, and the ink movement route in the capillary force generating member. The first object of the present invention is to provide an ink container which is capable of effectively preventing ink leakage, and also is capable of reliably supplying ink so that an image of stable quality can be formed, while being of a type which comprises a capillary force generating member storage chamber such as the above described one, and an ink storage chamber located immediately adjacent to the capillary force generating member storage chamber, In other words, the present invention is to provide an ink container and an ink supplying system, which are superior in terms of practical usage.
The second object of the present invention is to provide, based on the recognition of the above described first aspect, an ink container which is suitable for using fibrous material as the material for the capillary force generating member, and does not leak ink when subjected to ambient change, while being of the type which comprises a capillary force generating member storage chamber such as the above described one, and an ink storage chamber located immediately adjacent to the capillary force generating member storage chamber.
The fourth object of the present invention is to provide, based on the recognition of the above described second aspect, and by controlling the variation in the ink route through the negative pressure generating member, an ink container which can reliably supply ink so that images of stable quality can be formed, while being of the type which comprises a capillary force generating member storage chamber such as the above described one, and an ink storage chamber located immediately adjacent to the capillary force generating member storage chamber.
The remaining objects of the present invention are to provide various inventions related to the above described liquid supplying methods, and head cartridges or the like, which are compatible with the above described liquid supplying system.
The present invention for accomplishing the above described various objects is based on a completely innovative concept, which could not be found in the past, and more specific means of the invention will be understood from the structure which will be described hereinafter.
The liquid supply system in accordance with the present invention for accomplishing the aforementioned first object is characterized in that it comprises: a capillary force generating storage container which contains a capillary force generating member, and has an air vent for forming gas routes from the internal space of the ink container to the outside, through the liquid supplying portion for supplying outward the liquid retained in the capillary force generating member, and a capillary force generating member; and a liquid storage container, which has a liquid storing portion for storing the liquid to be supplied to the capillary force generating member storage container, and a connective path portion for supplying the liquid to the capillary force generating member storage chamber, and is virtually airtightly sealed except for the location of the connective path portion, in that the capillary force generating member is provided with a layer of fiber strands in which the primary directions of the fiber strands, that is, the direction in which the strands are more or less parallelly arranged, coincides with the horizontal direction, and this layer is located in the region connecting the liquid supplying portion and the top portion of the connective path portion, and in that the position of the connective path portions is higher than the position of the liquid supply portion, and is below the position of the top surface of the capillary force generating member.
According to the above described liquid supplying system, as liquid is supplied to the capillary force generating member through the joint between the capillary force generating member storage chamber and liquid supply container, gas-liquid exchange occurs mainly through this connective path portion. Therefore, the gas-liquid interface within the capillary force generating member develops, normally, in the top end portion of this connective path portion. Therefore, if the aforementioned layer of fiber strands, in which the primary strand direction approximately coincides with the horizontal direction, is positioned in this top end portion of this connective path portion, the gas-liquid interface can be stabilized even in an ambience such as the above described one.
Further, in the liquid supplying system in accordance with the present invention, which is structured a described above, in order keep within a predetermined range, the length of the route, from the connective path portion to the liquid supplying portion, which the ink follows as it flows through the capillary force generating member, the position of the connective path portion is rendered higher than the position of the liquid supplying portion. Therefore, the difference, among different ink routes, in the amount of the effect to which the components in the liquid are subjected as the liquid flows from the connective path portion to the liquid supplying portion, is smaller.
Thus, it is possible to provide an ink container and an ink supplying system which are superior in practically, that is, an ink container and an ink supplying system which are capable of effectively preventing ink leakage, and reliably supplying ink so that images with stable quality can be formed, while the ink container remaining as an ink container of the aforementioned type which comprises a capillary force generating member storage chamber and an ink storage chamber positioned adjacent thereto.
In addition to the above described structure, if the fibrous layer is expanded into a part of the region directly above the region occupied originally by the fibrous layer, it is possible to cause the fibrous layer to maintain the functions such as those described above, even if the gas-liquid interface rises due to the change in the amount of the liquid supplied into the capillary force generating member storage container.
Further, if the capillary force generating member is formed as a combination of a plurality of smaller pieces of capillary force generating material, and these smaller pieces are arranged so that the interfaces among these small pieces are located above the fibrous layer, the stability of the gas-liquid interface can be improved. In other words, the interfaces among the plurality of the smaller pieces of the capillary force generating material also have an effect of regulating the ink flow direction, that is, an effect of causing the ink to flow in the desirable direction.
Further, when the capillary forces at the interfaces among the smaller pieces of fibrous material are stronger than the capillary forces in these pieces, the degree by which the movement of the gas-liquid interface is impeded by the interfaces among the smaller pieces of the fibrous material is greater than the degree by which the movement of the gas-liquid is impede by the internal portions of the smaller pieces. Therefore, it is possible to secure the space above the interfaces among the smaller pieces of fibrous material, as the buffering space, by assuring with the use of one of the functions of the interfaces among the smaller pieces of fibrous material, that is, the ability to impede the movement of the gas-liquid interface, so that the gas-liquid interface does not move above the interfaces among the smaller pieces of the fibrous material.
Further, among the aforementioned plurality of smaller pieces of fibrous material, if those on the bottom side are stronger in capillary force than those on the top side, the interfaces among the smaller pieces of fibrous material more effectively prevents the gas-liquid interface from moving above the interfaces among the smaller pieces of fibrous material.
Further, among the aforementioned plurality of smaller pieces of fibrous material, if those on the top side are greater in hardness than those on the bottom side, those on the bottom side deform more, increasing the capillary force in those on the bottom side, when those on the top side and those on the bottom side are compressed against each other.
Further, if a liquid supply container is provided with a liquid storage portion which deforms as the liquid within the liquid storage is drawn out, and which is capable of generating negative pressure, the change in the amount of the liquid supplied into a capillary force generating member storage container can be reduced by absorbing, by the deformation of the liquid storage portion, the fluctuation in the internal pressure of the liquid storage portion caused by the changes in the ambience in which a liquid supplying system is used, to more effectively prevent the gas-liquid interface from shifting. As will be described later in the section in which the embodiments of the present invention are described, it is desired that the deformable liquid storage portion is covered with a shell to prevent the volume of the liquid storage portion from exceeding a predetermined upper limit, and also to control the liquid storage portion so that its shape remains desirable as it deforms.
Further, in the liquid supplying system in accordance with the present invention, the liquid supply container may be structured so that it can be removably connected to the capillary force generating member storage container. In such a case, after the liquid in one liquid supply container runs out, the capillary force generating member storage chamber portion of the liquid supplying system can be repeatedly used by replacing the empty liquid supply container with another liquid supply container which is full of liquid.
The capillary force generating member in accordance with the present invention does not have a structure like urethane in which capillaries are sharply constricted in some areas. Therefore, even if the substance which has dissolved from the structural components or debris into the liquid becomes trapped in the capillary force generating member, no change occurs to the liquid supplying performance. Thus, according to the present invention, the capillary force generating member can control the movement of the gas-liquid interface movement even after a long period of usage.
On the other hand, the liquid supplying system in accordance with the present invention for accomplishing the aforementioned second object is characterized in that in the liquid supplying system which comprises a liquid supply container, in the sealed space of which a liquid storage space for storing liquid is provided, and a capillary force generating member storage chamber which is in connection with the liquid storage portion through the joint between the liquid supply container and capillary force generating member storage chamber, and contains a capillary force generating member, liquid is supplied through gas-liquid exchange, that is, a process in which the liquid in the liquid storage portion is drawn out into the capillary force generating member storage chamber by introducing gas into the liquid storage portion through the aforementioned joint, and the capillary force generating member is provided with a layer of fiber strands which is located along the interface between the gas and liquid in the capillary force generating member during a liquid supplying operation, and in which the fiber strands are arranged more or less in parallel to the adjacent strands in the approximately horizontal direction, in terms of the primary direction.
Assuming that a member which contains fibrous material is used as the capillary force generating member, and liquid enters this fibrous portion, if the direction of the advancement of the liquid is perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the fiber strands, the fiber strands function to resist the advance of the liquid, whereas if the direction of the advance of the liquid coincides with the longitudinal direction of the strands, the resistance produced by the fiber strands is small. Therefore, if the fiber strands in this member are arranged in a specific direction (primary direction), it is possible to control the directionality of the liquid flow in this member; the liquid flows more efficiently in the direction parallel to the primary direction of the fiber strand arrangement than in the direction perpendicular to the primary direction of the fiber strand arrangement.
Therefore, it is possible to prevent the liquid supplied into the capillary force generating member storage container through gas-liquid exchange from flowing, while dispersing, straight toward the interface between the gas and liquid, by providing the capillary force generating member with a layer, in which the primary direction in which the fiber strands are arranged is approximately horizontal, and the location of which coincides with the interface between the gas and liquid while the liquid is supplied into the capillary force generating member through the gas-liquid exchange in the capillary force generating member, so that the interface between the gas and liquid can be stabilized.
The liquid supplying system in another embodiment of the present invention for accomplishing the second object is characterized in that a layer in which the primary direction of the fiber strands is approximately horizontal is positioned in the region of the capillary force generating member, adjacent to the top end of the connective path portion formed as the liquid supply container is connected to the capillary force generating member storage container.
As liquid is supplied to the capillary force generating member through the connective path portion between the capillary force generating member storage container and liquid supply container, gas-liquid exchange occurs mainly through this connective path portion. Therefore, normally, the gas-liquid interface in the capillary force generating member occurs in the region adjacent to the top portion of this connective path portion. Thus, if the fiber strands in this region adjacent to the top end of the connective path portion are arranged in the approximately horizontal direction, the gas-liquid interface stabilizes.
The liquid supplying system in another embodiment of the present invention for accomplishing the aforementioned second object is characterized in that the capillary force generating member is provided with a layer in which the fiber strands possesses directionality, that is, a layer as a liquid movement controlling portion for regulating the liquid movement in the capillary force generating member, With the provision of this type of liquid movement controlling portion, it is possible to control the direction of the liquid movement in the capillary force generating member so that the liquid is moved in the desired direction, in order to enhancing the liquid delivery from the liquid supplying system, and to prevent the liquid from leaking from the portion other than the liquid delivery opening of the liquid supplying system.
The liquid supplying system in another embodiment of the present invention for accomplishing the aforementioned second object is characterized in that a layer in which the fiber strands possesses directionality in arrangement is provided so that the fiber strands arranged in the primary direction keep horizontal the gas-liquid interface in the capillary force generating member, during a liquid supplying operation.
It is conceivable that if the amount of the liquid which is naturally supplied from the liquid supply container to the capillary force generating member storage container due to the changes in the temperature or ambient pressure of the environment in which the liquid supplying system is used (or naturally supplied from the capillary force generating member storage container to the liquid supply container) changes, the gas-liquid interface shifts in the gravity direction. During this shift, if the gas-liquid interface is not horizontal, a portion or portions of the gas-liquid interface which have deformed in the gravity direction further deform, reaching the top surface of the capillary force generating member, or the bottom side of the liquid delivery opening. On the other hand, when the gas-liquid interface is horizontal, the entirety of the gas-liquid interface moves, remaining flat and horizontal, and therefore, ratio of the amount of the gas-liquid interface movement relative to the amount of the change in the amount of the liquid supplied to the capillary force generating member storage container is smaller compared to when the gas-liquid interface is not horizontal. Thus, by making the gas-liquid interface horizontal with the provision of a layer formed of fiber, it is possible to prevent liquid leaking from the top surface of the capillary force generating member due to the upward movement of the gas-liquid interface, or liquid from failing to be supplied to the liquid delivery opening due to the downward movement of the gas-liquid interface.
Further, when the capillary force generating member storage container is provided with a delivery opening for drawing out ink, in addition to the connective path portion to the liquid supply container, by providing the region of the capillary force generating member connecting the delivery opening and the top end of the connective path portion, with a layer in which the primary direction in which the fiber strands are arranged is approximately horizontal, it is possible to prevent the flow of the liquid guided from the liquid supply container to the delivery opening through the capillary force generating member as the gas-liquid interface in the capillary force generating member moves downward from the delivery opening or the top end of the connective path portion, from worsening.
In other words, where liquid flows is in the region below the gas-liquid interface, and therefore, as the gas-liquid interface moves below the top end of the delivery opening, the liquid does not flow into the region above the gas-liquid interface. Thus, the mount of the liquid which flows along this surface reduces compared to when the liquid flows on both sides of the gas-liquid interface, worsening the flow. Similarly, as the gas-liquid interface moves below the top end of the connective portion, the amount of the liquid which flows the opening surface of the connective portion reduces, and therefore, the liquid flow worsens. Therefore, if a fibrous layer, in which the primary direction in which the fiber strands are arranged is approximately horizontal, is provided in the region connecting the top end of the connective portion and the top end of the delivery opening, it is difficult for the gas-liquid interface to move in the direction perpendicular to the fiber strand arrangement direction, and therefore, it is possible to prevent the liquid flow from worsening.
Further, if an air introduction path for introducing the atmospheric air is provided in the internal surface of the wall which constitutes the connective path portion between the capillary force generating member storage container and liquid storage portion, the gas-liquid interface develops at the top end portion of the air vent. In this case, therefore, it only has to be at the top end portion of the air introduction path where the layer in which the primary direction in which the fiber strands are arrange is approximately horizontal is disposed.
Further, the liquid supplying system in accordance with the present invention for accomplishing the third object of the present invention is characterized in that in a liquid supplying system comprising: a capillary force generating member storage container which stores therein a capillary force generating member for retaining liquid, and is provided with a liquid delivery portion for delivering outward the liquid retained in the capillary force generating member, and an air vent through which the capillary force generating member is exposed to the atmospheric air, and a liquid storage container which is provided with a liquid storage portion for storing therein the liquid to be supplied to said capillary force generating member storage container, and a connective path portion for supplying the liquid to the capillary force generating member storage container, and forms therein a virtually sealed space except for the presence of the connective path portion, the connective path portion is positioned higher than the liquid delivery portion, and lower than the top surface of the capillary force generating member.
In the liquid supplying system structured as described above, the connective path portion is positioned at a level higher than the liquid delivery portion, so that the length of the liquid route from the connective path portion to the liquid delivery portion, in the capillary force generating member, falls in a desired range. Therefore, the difference in the effects to which the ingredients of liquid are subjected, which occurs because of the difference in the route taken by the liquid as it flows from the connective path portion to the liquid delivery portion, can be reduced.
Further, the present invention is such an invention that provides a capillary force generating member storage container, a liquid supply container, an ink jet head cartridge, an ink jet recording apparatus, and ink container, which are capable of accomplishing the above described objects.
The liquid supplying container in accordance with the present invention is characterized in that it is a liquid supply container to be connected to a capillary force generating member storage container storing a capillary force generating member provided with a layer in which the primary direction in which the fiber strands are arranged is approximately horizontal, and comprises: a liquid storage portion forming a virtually sealed space therein; a delivery portion through which the liquid stored in the liquid storage portion is drawn out, and which constitutes a connective path portion at which the liquid supply container is connected to capillary force generating member storage container; and a sealing means for airtightly sealing the delivery portion, wherein the connective path portion is positioned at level below the top end of the fibrous layer of the capillary force generating member.
The capillary force generating member storage container in accordance with the present invention is characterized in that it is a capillary force generating member storage contained, which comprises: a connective path portion for drawing liquid from an external liquid supplying means; a liquid delivery means for delivering liquid to an external portion different from the liquid supplying means; and which stores therein a capillary force generating member for temporarily retaining liquid, and is provided with an air vent through which the internal space is connected to the atmospheric air, wherein gas-liquid exchange for receiving liquid by drawing gas into liquid supplying means occurs, and wherein the capillary force generating member is provided with a layer in which the primary direction in which fiber strands therein are arranged is approximately horizontal, and this layer is at the interface between the gas and liquid in the capillary force generating member, at which the gas-liquid exchange occurs for supplying liquid.
The capillary force generating member storage container in another embodiment of the present invention is characterized in that it is a capillary force generating member storage container, which comprises: a capillary force generating member for retaining liquid; a liquid delivery portion for delivering outward the liquid retained in the capillary force generating member; an air vent through which the capillary force generating member is exposed to the atmospheric air; and a connective path portion at which the capillary force generating member storage container is connected to the connective path portion of a liquid storage container which forms a virtually sealed space except for the presence of the connective path portion for supplying liquid to the capillary force generating member, and in which the connective path portion is positioned at a level higher than the position of the liquid delivery portion, and below the top surface of the capillary force generating member.
Further, an ink jet head cartridge in accordance with the present invention is characterized in that it is an ink jet head cartridge which comprises a liquid supplying system for supplying liquid, and a liquid ejection recording head portion which receives liquid from the liquid supplying system, and records by ejecting the liquid, and in which the liquid supplying system is the liquid supplying system described, above, and the recording head receives liquid from the liquid delivery portion of the capillary force generating member storage container.
An ink jet recording apparatus in accordance with the present invention is characterized in that it is an ink jet recording apparatus which comprises an ink jet head cartridge which records by ejecting liquid, and a carriage which removably holds the ink jet head cartridge supported in a manner to be reciprocally movable along the surface of recording medium;
wherein the ink jet head cartridge is provided with the liquid supplying system disclosed in above, and a liquid election recording head portion which receives liquid from the liquid delivery portion of the capillary force generating member storage container of this system, and records by ejecting the liquid, and in which the ink jet recording head cartridge is further provided with a head recovery unit for performing a recovery operation for the liquid ejection recording head portion.
The ink container in accordance with the present invention is compatible with the characteristics of the above described liquid supplying system. The ink container in accordance with the present invention is characterized in that it is an ink container which comprises: a liquid supply chamber, which has a liquid storage portion for storing liquid in the sealed space therein, and a capillary force generating member storage chamber, the internal space of which is connected to the internal space of the liquid storage portion through the connective path portion between the two chambers, and which contains a capillary force generating member, and supplies liquid through gas-liquid exchange, that is, a process in which gas is drawn into the liquid storage portion through the connective path portion so that the liquid in the liquid storage portion is drawn out into the capillary force generating member storage chamber, and in which the capillary force generating member is provided with a layer in which the primary direction in which fiber strands therein are arranged is approximately horizontal, and this layer is at the interface between the gas and liquid in the capillary force generating member, at which the gas-liquid exchange occurs for supplying liquid.
The ink container in another embodiment of the present invention is characterized in that it is an ink container which comprises: a capillary force generating member storage chamber which stores therein a capillary force generating member for retaining liquid, and is provided with a liquid delivery portion for delivering outward the liquid retained in the capillary force generating member, and an air vent through which the capillary force generating member is exposed to the atmospheric air; and a liquid storage container which is provided with a liquid storage portion for storing therein the liquid to be supplied to said capillary force generating member storage chamber, and a connective path portion for supplying the liquid to the capillary force generating member storage chamber, and forms therein a virtually sealed space except for the presence of the connective path portion; and in which the connective path portion is positioned at a level higher than the liquid delivery portion.
Further, the liquid supplying system in another embodiment of the present invention is characterized in that it is a liquid supplying system which comprises: a capillary force generating member storage container which stores therein a capillary force generating member for retaining liquid, and is provided with a liquid delivery portion for delivering outward the liquid retained in the capillary force generating member, and an air vent through which the capillary force generating member is exposed to the atmospheric air; and a liquid storage container which is provided with a liquid storage portion for storing therein the liquid to be supplied to said capillary force generating member storage container, and a connective path portion for supplying the liquid to said capillary force generating member storage container, and forms therein a virtually sealed space except for the presence of the connective path portion; and in which the connective path portion is positioned at a level higher than the liquid delivery portion, and below the top surface of the capillary force generating member; and in which a capillary force generating member comprises: a first capillary force generating portion connected to the air vent; a second capillary force generating portion which generates a larger capillary force than the first capillary force generating portion, and is connected to the connective path portion; and a third capillary force generating portion which generates a larger capillary force than the second capillary force generating portion, and is connected to the liquid delivery portion; wherein the intersection between the interface between the first and second capillary force generating portions, and the wall in which the connective path portion is provided, is positioned at a level above the bottom end of the connective path portion; and wherein the interface between the second and third capillary force generating portions, and the wall in which the connective path portion is provided, is positioned at a level above the top end of the connective path portion, and above the bottom end of the connective path portion.
According to the above described structure, it is assured that liquid is retained in the capillary force generating member in which the route from the connective path portion to the liquid delivery portion is formed during a liquid supplying operation in which liquid is supplied from the liquid supply container through gas-liquid exchange, making it possible to realize a more stable ink supplying operation.
These and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent upon a consideration of the following description of the preferred embodiments of the present invention taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.